A German conductor of Greek origin, Ektoras Tartanis was appointed as the First Kapellmeister at the Opera House in Freiburg at the beginning of the 2019/2020 season, after occupying the same position in Bremerhaven for two years and assisting at the Opera House in Wuppertal.

Like many other conductors and musicians, Ektoras has had to face almost a year of cancellations, postponements, and social restrictions under lockdown. He tells us about how he has taken this time to reflect, adapt, and find a new kind of rhythm.

How has the pandemic affected you?

The most obvious fact was that we stopped playing for an audience. At my theatre, we had some up and downs with 50 audience members allowed, or 100; and now it’s completely locked down. But we are in the weird situation where we still produce. Behind locked doors, we still rehearse, and we still organise future plans. We come together, and we discuss how we can switch to digital formats and to produce whatever we can produce to be active for our audience. It’s given us the opportunity to reach more people through digital approaches.

Personally, I found a lot of spare time to deal with things I left over and I hadn’t the time, basically, to deal with while I was working full time. The biggest effect was that I have time to focus on my personal growth, on composition which is a very important part for me but it has to stay behind conducting. Now I really can develop that and dive into it, which I’m grateful for.

How have you been keeping motivated?

For me, it’s very important to have a rhythm in life, because this feeds the next day and the day after, and you can connect the day before. I think it’s important to keep the steady rhythm up, even though it’s not put on you from outside factors. I think that if I know I have something to do, and I have something which I am passionate about the next day, I really can get up with joy and look forward to it, even though everything around me isn’t the way I want it to be, obviously. Rhythm, for me personally, is the magic word.

When you talk about habits or routines, or whatever you want to call it; this varies. You can’t look the other way, depending on how you feel, how you have to adjust. If there is consistency in your life to some degree, I think you are safe from outer, negative influences.

They asked Tchaikovsky something along the lines of, ‘How is it possible to compose so much and so good?’

He said, ‘I get up every day, and sit at the piano at 9 o’clock; and the muses learned to be in time.’

Just by being there, turning up at the same time, it just works at some point.

What discoveries have you made?

I feel that it is a time for discoveries, because we are all forced to deal with ourselves and I feel that, if we don’t take this time to really recalibrate our inner compass, then we will never do it. I discovered what I need and what I don’t need, what makes me happy and what doesn’t. I reconnected with old friends and I put my values straight again. It was really a time of reflection. It’s a time to find your passion again, to really feel what is important to you and what makes you happy, because if everything around you is literally locked down, then that’s everything you have. It’s a good exercise as well.

What do you look forward to?

I look forward to the reopening of everything, not only for music - I want to conduct again and to share these musical experiences with an audience - but also the whole social aspect. To bring it in line with what I’ve experienced now all by myself, and reaching out with that new feeling. I feel that I had some ‘click’ moments where things developed, at least mentally. But you’re still in a bubble. So I really look forward to embrace the world again, and to be in touch with people.

Ektoras Tartanis - B&W - full - © Alexander Forge.jpeg — © Alexander Forge

What kind of music have you been listening to?

I’ve listened to a lot of new music, to me. Classical music - I listened to a lot of Giacinto Scelsi. I knew that I liked him and I connect with his music but… man, he’s a genius.

I have this problem as a composer, but also as a listener and consumer: I can’t listen to so much contemporary music because it’s so loud and cacophonic, but then again if it’s too soft and too old-fashioned and conservative, it’s not interesting enough to keep me attentive. It’s really difficult to find that middle ground where you fulfil both expectations. I was surprised that it caught me so much.

And then lots of blues, and tango music, and a lot of jazz and new contemporary groups. The Holy Gasp and groups from all over the world. It’s good companionship these days.

I think it comes with this situation. We should not forget that the moment we create this space, that we allow this gap to happen between our consumption behaviour and ourselves and our real needs. We suddenly realise, what do I actually really need and what do I crave for, rather than just consuming it because it’s just around me.

We live in a world with way more music than we actually need; the offer is more than the demand. So we have to pick what we want, and now it initiates a process within us where we realise ‘I have a tendency towards this kind of music’. I think this was lacking before.

How has music helped you during the pandemic?

I think this was the constant factor in my daily life. It’s also hard for an artist to find a balance between work and personal, when, as an artist, we live out our passions, our passion is our job. It’s hard to draw a line where one ends and the other starts. Before, I used to listen and to work on music and to look for the next pieces, to prepare. And now, this ‘to do’ side of things isn’t there anymore, I still feel that there is still so much that I have to do to develop as a musician, because there is no end. That’s the beautiful thing. There is so much music and there is so much you can learn, and if you are really passionate about it and you are engaged, you have the ambition to grow, then you’re going to invest daily. I think that’s a must. This also helps you to go through difficult times like this, because it gives you stability and confidence, and hope. It’s a profound content you’re dealing with, and it has a deep connection to you. The time will come when you will share it again, but for now it’s your secret relationship.

Monday Motivation: Conductor Ektoras Tartanis shares his outlook on life in lockdown